Monthly Archives: February 2018

I’m hoping to start up this new little series to get me posting more regularly. I often feel like I shouldn’t post unless I have something of Relative Importance™ to say, so I figure there’s no better way to face that feeling than by starting a series dedicated to writing about the small things that are making my life just a tiny bit more productive, enjoyable, or better.

Or, you know, also potentially just cute animal videos. What better way to start your week? Here we go!

A few things I’ve been into recently:

1. Roasted, salted pumpkin seeds.

Whenever I’m trying to ~eat better~ (re: not treat my body like various trash receptacles), I consume an ungodly amount of pumpkin seeds. In their little delicious seed coat. Pumpkin seeds satisfy my intense craving for salty snacks … and I get like, 20% of my fiber requirement in one serving!

2. Atlanta Monster

Podcasts are really having A Moment™ right now. It seems like every blogger and their mom has one. I listen to podcasts. You probably do, too.

I wouldn’t call myself a true crime podcast junkie; most of the podcasts I listen to are about music, politics, pop culture, or self-improvement. But there are a few in the genre that I’ve found really interesting/compelling.

On a recent trip home to Arkansas, I started listening to Atlanta Monster, which is an investigation into the Atlanta Child Murders of the late 1970s and early 1980s. I didn’t know anything about these events, so it’s been really informational for me on that point, but this podcast doesn’t stop at exploring case facts … it also delves into race relations in Atlanta during this time period. Very thought-provoking.

There are only ten episodes (seven of them are available right now) and the episodes are about an hour each, so it’s not a huge time investment. I find it really well-done and the editing really ups the thrill factor. Shout out to whoever wrote the music. A lot of true crime/investigative podcasts have some like, embarrassingly-weird soundtrack. Not this one.

Anyway, give it a listen. I really like it.

3. Plant Nanny

You know, for a singer, I sure have a hard time drinking enough water. Enter Plant Nanny: an app that allows me to game-ify my water consumption. Every time I drink water, I get to water my little virtual plant and it grows and it’s really cute. The app even reminds me when my plant is thirsty.

I am ashamed to say that since beginning to use Plant Nanny, I have killed my little virtual plant and have had to start over with a new one, but I can also say I have seen myself make a great effort to drink more water. And the days when I don’t drink water? I can really, really tell. HYDRATE YOURSELVES, EVERYONE.

Look! Technology! It’s helping us live our best lives!

4. Vegetable and Rice Casserole

During Advent, I decided to do this thing where I made a new recipe every week. This particular recipe was not one of the recipes I made over those four weeks, but cooking new things during that time reminded me just how much I love being in the kitchen and making something new.

I stumbled upon this veggie and rice casserole while I was logging my meals into MyFitnessPal and it was just the perfect thing for these weird mid-winter days. Warm and hearty and full of leafy greens.

Yes, I am that person who searches for “healthy casserole” recipes. You can take the girl out of the South but …

5. Lysol Wipes and Hand Sanitizer

Y’all know it’s flu season.

So, there you have it, folks! I hope your Monday’s going swimmingly and you find all sorts of miscellaneous things to brighten your week. What sort of things have you been into recently?

And where have I been? Rather than start by relaying everything I’ve missed or been doing, let’s just start where we are. Right in the middle of it.In medias res.

Did you know that overwhelm is a real thing? This is probably not news to you. Honestly, it’s not really news to me, either. I think we are all pretty overwhelmed by something in our lives. My overwhelm is probably a little bit different than yours. And that’s a verified Martha Stewart Good Thing™.

I think overwhelm is why I have avoided writing. What do I say? It’s going to take forever to catch everyone up on all the things I’ve done, seen, whatever. I’ve kind of been feeling that way since 2018 started. There’s so much to say. I’m overwhelmed.

I spend weeks or months kicking myself for not saying anything, knowing that I should say something, and then, for whatever reason, one day (and it turns out that this day is February 12th), I decide to just open up Notepad and start typing.

So, here I am. In medias res.

In some English class or another in school, we learned about narratives that started in medias res: works of literature that began in the middle of action or the events in the book. Past events and exposition are revealed in various ways, but you don’t experience those events in real-time.

For now, let’s just say this is a narrative that is beginning in medias res. Maybe I’ll explain what’s been going on, where I’ve been, what I’ve been doing … but let’s just start here, in the middle of the present, the now.

I look forward to writing even more frequently and voraciously as I realize that it’s not necessary to recount the past, but merely describe the present. I don’t have to go back and write a history.